ALAN Thatcher liked to think that he was a cool dad. He drove a vintage Volkswagen, owned a sweet little apartment in the heart of Greenwich Village, and, not to mention, he was a comic book artist, something he considered to be the coolest of professions.

In all reality, he was just a loveable dork.

"You're sure you've got all of your things?"

"Yes, Dad."

"And enough cash? And gold coins?"

"Drachmas, Dad. You know that."

"Yes, drachmas. I know that."

Alan glanced over at his daughter, who was lounging in the passenger seat beside him, her sandal-clad feet resting lazily on the dashboard of the ol' VW.

"What about your pens? Your sketchbook? Maybe you'll have more time for drawing this summer."

"They're in my bag, but .... well, after last summer, I doubt I'll have much time for that. Especially with ... especially with Silena gone."

Alan didn't know too much about what went on in Camp Half Blood each summer, but he knew all too well about what had happened the year past. He'd been blessed, or cursed, depending on who you asked, with the ability to see through the mist, so while the rest of the mortals overlooked the devastation in Manhattan as a natural disaster, he knew exactly what had happened.

He'd seen it, with his own eyes.

He also knew his own daughter had been caught up in the middle of it, and she'd lost many people that she was close to, including a sister.

He'd do anything to take away all of her internal pain in an instant, but there wasn't anything he could do for that. So, he did what he could actually do — try and cheer her up with his endless chatter and terribly cheesy jokes.

"Things are going to be okay, Lolo," Alan said, purposely using the nickname he'd crafted for Lorelai as a child in an attempt to bring a smile to her face.

A small smile filled Lorelai's face. "It will be nice to see everyone again."

Alan nudged her with his arm. "See? There you go."

Lorelai pulled her feet to her chest, wrapping her arms around them as she gazed idly out of the passenger window. The towers of Manhattan had long disappeared, and she knew the rolling strawberry fields of Camp Half Blood would come into view.

"So," Alan cleared his voice awkwardly. "Is there anyone in particular you're looking forward to seeing this summer?"

"Daaad," Lorelai groaned, a pink tint coming to her already rosy cheeks. "I'm looking forward to seeing everybody."

"What?" Alan chuckled. "I'm just asking a question!"

"No, Dad." She rolled her eyes. "No one in particular."

Alan was well aware of the powers his daughter possessed in the "love department," as he himself had fallen under the charm of Aphrodite, the goddess of love. Lorelai was a direct result of that union, and he knew his daughter had inherited some of her mother's charms, just as she'd inherited his own artistic abilities.

"Okay. I was just curious."

The father-daughter duo sat in silence for a few more minutes, and soon enough, the familiar sights of Camp Half Blood came into view.

"Here we are," Lorelai muttered, clutching her old yellow backpack to her chest.

"Here we are." A bittersweet smile filled Alan's face as he looked at his daughter. He knew that Camp Half Blood was her happy place; her safe haven away from the chaos of the mortal realm. But, that didn't make it any easier to drop her off each summer -- especially this summer, after everything she'd been through the year before.

Alan pulled the car up to the edge of camp, knowing that was as far as he would be able to go, as a mortal. He stepped out of the car, unloading Lorelai's suitcase as his daughter pulled her other bags from the backseat. She slung her backpack over her shoulder and held tightly onto her art bag, then took the suitcase from her father.

"Thanks, Dad. I've got it from here."

Alan smiled and pulled her in for a hug. "I know you do, kiddo."

Lorelai pulled away, looking up at the hill, the strawberry fields, the Big House, Thalia's pine, and everything else that reminded her of home. A small smile filled her face.

"Bye, Dad. See you in August," she said, taking a step towards the magical barrier that would separate the demigod from her mortal father.

"See you in August."

༺❀༻

The cabins came into view as Lorelai entered camp, and with them, the group of people she had come to love as her family. Not everyone had arrived yet, as Lorelai was still a few days early before the official beginning of the camp's summer season.

She saw Chiron and Mr. D sitting on the front porch of the Big House, a game of pinochle spread out between the two of them. She was glad to see that some things were still the same.

"Lorelai!" Drew Tanaka, Lorelai's half sister and fellow Cabin 10 resident, called out from a nearby picnic table, where she was painting the fingernails of a younger girl from the Apollo cabin.

The blonde grinned as she dropped her bags and ran over to Drew, who engulfed her in a hug reminiscent of one from a child of Ares.

"Hi, Drew. How was your school year?" Lorelai asked.

Drew shrugged. "As good as can be expected. Monster attacks were pretty low, if that's what you mean."

Of course, that was what a half blood always meant.

"Same here. I think they're staying low in the city, after last year," Lorelai said, both of the sisters falling silent as they reminisced on the past summer.

Drew grabbed the nail polish and waved goodbye to the Apollo girl, who was already making a beeline for some of her siblings, then followed Lorelai to their cabin.

"So, how are you feeling about being the senior counselor this year?" Drew asked as the two sisters entered the Aphrodite cabin.

The pink interior and perfumed aroma washed over Lorelai with a sense of familiarity, and she took a deep breath. Finally, she was home.

"Well, I'm a little nervous, to be honest," Lorelai said as she walked over to her bed. While everyone else was bunked up, the senior counselor got their own bed. She dropped her bags down on the bedspread, looking around at the remnants of Silena that filled the small area. A picture of her and Charles, stray bobby pins, an empty box from her father's chocolate shop and the lingering scent of her favorite perfume. Most of her things had been sent home to Silena's father in the Village, but these things remained, almost as if the Aphrodite campers had left them as a memorial shrine.

"I would be, too," Drew admitted. "But I think you'll do great."

Lorelai smiled as she began unpacking her things. "Thanks, Drew."

Drew could see that Lorelai wanted some time alone, so she grabbed a magazine off of a nearby table and headed for the door. "I'll see you in a bit. Come find us when you're finished unpacking."

"Will do!" Lorelai called over her shoulder as Drew left. Finally alone, Lorelai scanned the empty Aphrodite cabin, which would soon be bubbling with offspring of the goddess of love. She picked up the lingering photo of Silena and Beckendorf, wondering how she would ever begin to fill the shoes of her sister. "What am I going to do, Silena?"

She picked up Silena's remaining belongings and brought them over to a nearby dresser, which was typically taken over by makeup and various hair accessories. Given as most of the campers had yet to move in, there was still some free space. Lorelai set the picture, along with the other items, up on the dresser, displaying them properly as a memorial to Silena in the old chocolate box. Perhaps she could talk to Argus about getting a shadow box or something else from the mortal world to display them in properly, but for now, she supposed, that would do.

Lorelai finished unpacking her things, placing her sketchbook, markers, and a framed portrait of her and her father up on the small shelf that accompanied the senior counselor bed. She put away her clothes, which were mostly composed of Camp Half Blood apparel, despite their dreadful orange color. Finally, she checked herself over in the mirror, adjusted her CHB necklace and fixed the straps on her sandals. Time to see who else had arrived.

She exited the Aphrodite cabin to see a group of campers on the basketball court. Another group lingered in the strawberry fields, while more gathered near the canoe pond. Lorelai looked around for Drew, or any other Aphrodite campers, really, but didn't see anyone.

Finally, she caught two familiar faces coming over the hill. Though they weren't Aphrodite campers, she was still happy to see them.

The school year had been good to Percy and Annabeth, Lorelai observed. They gushed with the energy of young love, and from their entwined fingers, it looked as if a school year together in New York hadn't been enough time for the two to be together.

Knowing her friends had both been in the city that school year, Lorelai had arranged a coffee meet up between the three of them the previous winter. Percy, always one to get along with Lorelai, had chattered endlessly about how smoothly his school year was going, and Lorelai, ever charismatic, managed to carry the conversation between the two of them. Annabeth had never been Lorelai's biggest fan, and though Lorelai thought the daughter of Athena would be above petty jealousy, it appeared she wasn't.

"Percy, Annabeth!" Lorelai waved to the two as they came close enough. "Welcome back!"

"Hey, Lorelai!" Percy grinned and gave the blonde a quick, friendly hug. "When did you get back?"

Lorelai shrugged. "Literally about twenty minutes before you two." She glanced over at Annabeth, who was studying her intently. "Hi, Annabeth. Nice to see you."

Annabeth smiled. "Nice to see you too, Lorelai. How was your school year?"

"As well as can be expected," Lorelai stated.

"Right," Percy nodded.

Though the demigods were glad to be back at camp, it was clear that lingering regrets and fear still remained from the previous summer.

"Hopefully it will be a good summer," Annabeth stated. "I think ... I think we could all use a break."

Lorelai nodded in agreement, watching behind Percy and Annabeth as another car came into view.

A tall figure emerged from the car, clad in a leather jacket and black jeans. Lorelai almost mistook the girl for Thalia, but as she turned around, it was definitely not the daughter of Zeus.

"Who is that?" Lorelai asked, causing Percy and Annabeth to turn as well.

"Is that ..." Annabeth trailed off. "Esme?"

Lorelai's mouth fell agape. "Esme Kirby?"

"My gods, it is Esme." Percy waved to the girl as she gathered her things.

"I hardly recognized her," Annabeth said.

Lorelai could hardly believe her eyes. Esme Kirby had gotten hot over the school year. The daughter of Hermes had always been beautiful, but the time away from camp had seemed to provide her with a new aesthetic that Lorelai couldn't help but be in awe of.

A smile crept onto Lorelai's face as Esme waved back at Percy, thus also waving at Lorelai and Annabeth.

"Holy Hera," Lorelai muttered.

"Holy Hermes," Annabeth responded.

Percy chuckled to himself at Annabeth's joke. "Nice one."

Annabeth rolled her gray eyes and tugged on Percy's arm, a knowing look in her face. She may not have been descended from Aphrodite, but the daughter of Athena was wise enough to know what infatuation looked like, as she'd just seen it on Lorelai's face. "Come on, Seaweed Brain. We've gotta unpack yet. See you later, Lorelai. Say hi to Esme for us," she said before dragging her boyfriend towards the cabins and leaving Lorelai alone on the hill.

"Hey, Lorelai," Esme called out as she reached the top of the hill, her suitcase trailing behind her.

Lorelai offered a friendly smile. "Hi, Esme. I like your jacket."

Esme smirked and looked down at her leather sleeves, then raised an eyebrow as she looked back to Lorelai. "Do you really?"

No, but she liked Esme in it.

"So, how was your school year?" Lorelai asked, echoing the question she'd heard about fifty times in the short time since she'd arrived at camp.

"Good," Esme nodded. "Was that Percy and Annabeth?"

Lorelai nodded. "They had to go unpack, but they say hi."

Esme smirked and picked up her bags. "I should probably go do that too. It was nice seeing you."

Lorelai grinned. "Nice seeing you too, Esme."

As the daughter of Hermes retreated for Cabin 11, Lorelai stayed behind, feeling a bit bewitched by Esme's arrival. She was used to such encounters, as the daughter of Aphrodite, but usually, she was on the other side. 

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ author's note ✫・゜・。.

wow, i've finally published the first chapter! sorry for a very, very long delay, i've been very busy with school. but, i've finally gotten the inspiration to pick up on this story again! 

also, i've added to the cast: previously it did not include drew tanaka, lorelai's aphrodite cabinmate/sister, but i've decided to include her in lover. she will be portrayed by actress sydney park.

thoughts on this first chapter? 

xx, madi.